Statement by The U15 Group of Canadian Research Universities on CFREF’s first round results

Posted on Jul 28, 2015

Ottawa, ON (July 28, 2015) – Today’s announcement of the first round of awards from the Canada First Research Excellence Fund demonstrates the federal government’s commitment to supporting globally competitive research excellence. Even more importantly, the projects and partnerships these Canadian universities brought forward for funding illustrate the capacity of our institutions to organize and engage in world-class research initiatives.

Research universities across Canada welcomed the creation of the Canada First Research Excellence Fund in Budget 2014, knowing that this investment would help elevate our institutions to a new level of global competitiveness. The announcement of this pioneering new fund was the culmination of two years of work by The U15 Group of Canadian Research Universities and Universities Canada, in partnership with the government of Canada.

We congratulate all the successful applicants today, U15 and non-U15 alike. We eagerly await the second round of funding announcements in 2016. We are confident that the research resulting from CFREF investments will advance our scientific understanding, boost our global position and make Canada a top destination for work and study by the best and brightest researchers here at home and around the world.